My keynote speech this morning at the Texas Association for Home Care & Hospice, “Bigger & Better Customer Service: Winning and keeping clients in today’s market,” shared my version of ‘lagniappe’ and how we add that extra dollop to home care. Today’s home care market has competitive and economic challenges that require new tactics and tools to succeed. Providing excellence in both the quality of the care provided and the way it is delivered necessitates a concierge state of mind. How have you made your customer service bigger and better?

Take it from me, the core of customer experience is understanding lagniappe.

A lagniappe (LAN-yap) is a small gift given to a customer by a merchant at the time of a purchase, something given or obtained gratuitously or by way of good measure.

Customer service with a concierge mentality is not a one-time event; rather, it is a process, and it permeates all components of the business:

Attitude: Bright, friendly, and helpful

Meeting Customer Needs:

From introduction through the relationship, any contact must be knowledgeable, helpful and responsive

Handling Conflict/Issues: Resolve conflicts or issues with respect, courtesy, and a genuine desire to help the customer

Special Requests, Services or Needs: Going out of the way to not only meet needs, but exceed expectations, making certain requests, services, or needs are not only met (baseline) but exceeded

Listeners today learned:

How to identify the concierge approach: what it is and how it looks

How to develop a plan to add in a concierge mentality for staff at all levels

How to identify any issues and/ or barriers to developing this approach to excellence

If you need some one-on-one consulting for great home care marketing and concierge, give me a call!